Biography All Music Guide Wikipedia
All Music Guide:
The Chicago musician Jeremy Jacobsen, better known as the Lonesome Organist, is a true one-man band. His simultaneous proficiency with a wide variety of instruments -- including the organ, drums, guitar, harmonica, toy piano, tap-shoes, and steel drum -- makes his music suitable for a variety hour or a circus show as well as a rock album. Never lacking in novelty, the Lonesome Organist mixed styles such as rock, yodeling, blues, circus music, and soundtrack music on his records. On his 1997 album, Collector of Cactus Echo Bag, and his 1999 album, Cavalcade -- released on the Thrill Jockey label -- Jacobsen used such a variety of instruments and arrangements that almost any musical genre could be pointed to as a likely influence. In his live performances, Jacobsen was no less eclectic, playing as many as four instruments at once and rapidly switching styles from song to song. However, the Lonesome Organist has not always been lonesome. He collaborated with bands such as the Blues Explosion, 5ive Style, and Euphone.
Forms and Follies, the Lonesome Organist's third effort, was recorded on eight tracks. It appeared in spring 2003.
Wikipedia:
The Lonesome Organist is the One-man band side project of Jeremy Jacobsen, keyboardist for Chicago Post-rock combo, 5ive Style. He has released three albums on Chicago indie label Thrill Jockey.
Style
According to Allmusic, influences for the project include film composer, Ennio Morricone and Psychobilly legend, Hasil Adkins.
A multi-instrumentalist, Jacobsen, uses guitar, keys, harmonica, steel drum, and various percussion instruments to get his unique blend of blues, rock, garage, Caribbean, and Appalachian sounds.
According to Thrill Jockey's official artist site, no more than 8 tracks are recorded for each song, allowing Jacobsen to preserve the authenticity of his live show in which he simultaneously plays two or more instruments at once.
An updated recording of The Lost Oar (first recorded on 1997's Collector of Cactus Echo Bags) can be found on 5ive Style's second full-length Miniature Portraits.
For his most recent full-length, Forms and Follies, Jacobsen added bassist Nick Marci of Bobby Conn and Euphone for two tracks.
